


Pale Drabbles

by HaroThar



Category: Homestuck, OFF (Game), Steven Universe (Cartoon), Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bad Cooking, Beekeeping, Confidence Training, Cooking, Cooking Lessons, Drabbles, Gen, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Sparring, hand holding, physical training, talking about feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-14
Updated: 2016-02-16
Packaged: 2018-05-20 15:01:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6013021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HaroThar/pseuds/HaroThar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of pale drabbles I've written on the 14th of February.<br/>So far involving:<br/>Steven and Connie talking about how Steven feels like the gems blame him for Rose being gone<br/>Papyrus and Undyne making spaghetti<br/>Papyrus and Alphys doing "confidence training"<br/>Gamzee and Sollux doing beekeeping related activities<br/>Batter falling asleep on Zacharie's counter in Zone 3<br/>Asgore and Grillby sparring</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Steven And Connie Chat

Steven and Connie sat outside the Big Donut together, the ocean breeze making both their hair curl and float lazily. Steven had chocolate icing with sprinkles, Connie had custard-filled.

“Do you think the gems blame me?” Steven asked.

“What?”

“For mom,” Steven said, not really looking at her or anything in particular. His donut suddenly no longer seemed enticing. “Do you think the gems blame me for her not being here anymore?”

“Steven, of course not!” Connie said, reaching across the table to hold one of his hands in hers. “Where did this come from?”

“I do,” he said quietly, tears already building up. “I know they try not to, but sometimes they get kinda quiet around me and I think, I think they get mad at me for mom not being here anymore, sometimes. Especially Pearl. She tries the hardest to hide it but there are little flashes when she- she’ll-” Steven started blubbering a bit, wiping at his eyes with his free hand.

“Hey, Steven, I’m sure they just miss her! It’s normal to miss people when they’re gone! It’s not your fault-”

“It kinda is!”

“Hey,” Connie stood up and walked over to Steven to give him a hug, “It’s not your fault. Your mom wanted you to be here and the gems love you a lot, they just, miss her sometimes. Like how my dad misses his dad sometimes!”

Steven sniffled and hugged Connie tightly.

“It’ll be okay Steven, they love you lots.”

“That doesn’t mean they don’t blame me sometimes.”

“I- I guess it doesn’t,” Connie said, floundering a bit, “but they’ll always come back around, right?”

“I guess,” Steven said miserably.

“I think this is one of those things my mom talks about, where it’s a hard situation but you just gotta make the best of it, as best you can!” Connie said, trying to sound confident.

Steven sniffled again and smiled, just a little.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Steven said, giving Connie a little squeeze before pulling back, “It’s like my dad always said! If all porkchops were perfect, there wouldn’t be hotdogs!”

“Right!” Connie said, glad she’d been able to do well by Steven, “You and the gems are just a big family of hot dogs!”

“Hot dogs!” Steven said excitedly, and the two shared a laugh.

Connie sat back down, and the two were quiet a moment.

“Thanks,” Steven said quietly.

“You’ve probably had that on your chest for a while, huh?”

“Yeah,” Steven admitted, picking back up his donut. “It’s nice to have it off.”

They both took a bite out of their respective donuts and the sea wind gusted cheerily about them.


	2. Papyrus and Undyne Make Spaghetti

Papyrus stood in Undyne’s kitchen, skeletal fingers balled into bony fists. He was _pumped!_ He was ready to pound some vegetables into sauce!

“I saw Mettaton make spaghetti on TV once so I know exactly what I’m doing,” Undyne said loudly, asserting her knowledge of spaghetti making. Papyrus, a fan of Mettaton and Undyne both, didn’t doubt for a moment that Undyne was a perfect authority on the topic.

“So Mettaton used a blender for this, but we,” Undyne paused to point a thumb at herself, like she’d seen on an anime once, “are gonna use our fists!”

“Yeah!” Papyrus agreed excitedly.

“We’re gonna pound ‘em to a pulp!”

“Yeah!”

“Are you ready?”

“Yeah!”

Undyne let out a loud “rrraaaagh” and began punching tomatoes excitedly, Papyrus following suit. It was the first time of many that the two would end up splattered in vegetable juices, laughing.


	3. Papyrus and Alphys, Confidence Training!

“I am a delight!” Papyrus shouted loudly, pumping his fist upward with a weight in his hand.

“I am a d-delight!” Alphys repeated, voice quieter and shakier. Her own fist pumped up with a much smaller, lighter weight.

“I am important!” Papyrus yelled, pumping his other fist.

“I am, I’m important!” Alphys echoed, even shakier this time.

“My friends care about me!” Papyrus exclaimed.

“My friends-” Alphys had a hard time getting her weight in the air, “My friends, care, ab-bout me!”

“Are you doing alright Alphys? Should we have used smaller weights for you?”

“I-I think, we maybe should have,” Alphys admitted, letting her arms drop to her sides.

“We’ll take a break then and use smaller weights when we start back up! For you, I mean! I, the Great Papyrus, am mighty and strong!”

Alphys laughed a little, sitting down for the break. “You sure are, Papyrus!”

Papyrus preened a bit and then slapped a poorly-judged hand down on Alphys’ shoulder a little too hard. “You are doing very well, Dr. Alphys! Soon you will be as mighty, and great, as I am, I am certain!”

Alphys laughed again and a bubbling sensation of warring pleasure and self-loathing welled up. She decided that, for the moment at least, she would let herself feel proud at her friend’s words.

“Thanks, Papyrus!”

“See!? Your smile is already becoming more confident!”


	4. Beekeepers Sollux and Gamzee

Gamzee stepped over the wires strewn about Sollux’s hivestem carefully. In his own hive, he could afford to step on any which thing, but he didn’t wanna wreck his date’s shit.

“Mind waiting a minute?” Sollux asked, “I gotta take care of the bees before we watch the movie.”

“Yeah, bro, I don’t mind none,” Gamzee said easily. He walked up to his tentative-boyfriend-sorta-not-quite-yet-boyfriend and pressed a cool palm against the tight muscles of Sollux’s spine. This brother was always five kinds of wound up about _something._

“Need help?” Gamzee asked.

“It’s just collecting honey and making sure none of them got themselves hurt while I was gone,” Sollux said, “It’s not hard.”

Sollux’s definition of “not hard” tended to be “anything I am even remotely capable of, despite its level of difficulty,” so Gamzee hummed pleasantly and didn’t believe that one motherfuckin’ bit. 

“I’ll help,” he said, decided but not firm. Sollux would take firmness as a challenge, and if there was anyone as petty and stubborn as Karkat, it was this twiggy motherfucker. Luckily, Gamzee was rarely any approximation of firm in the first place, which was probably a reason why the two were working out as well as they were.

Gamzee watched Sollux collect a hive’s worth of honey, and then he did the same for a different hive.

“You don’t have to,” Sollux protested, sounding a little guilty.

“I want to,” Gamzee said. Luckily for everyone, taking care of the bees actually _wasn’t_ difficult.

A bee landed on Gamzee’s nose, big and fat and purple. Gamzee honked lightly and laughed at the tiny motherfucker.

“Bro, these lil’ shits are cute as a motherfuck.”

“Well you’re right about them being little shits,” Sollux muttered, no bite in his words.

“You’re scarier over the internet when I can’t see purple lil’ polka dots bumblin’ around you like the happiest little motherfuckers I ever did see.”

“Shut the fuck up, asshole.”

Gamzee laughed again, moving the mind honey to its storage container.

“Bro, when’s the last time you cleaned up your storage area?” Gamzee asked, looking at the disarray that was honestly not uncommon in Sollux’s hivestem.

“When’s the last time you cleaned up _anything?”_ Sollux retorted.

“Not the motherfuckin’ question brother.”

“Fuck off.” 

“We should sort your shit before we watch the movie.”

“Like you’re any better!”

“Well I’m doin’ better right the motherfuck now!” Gamzee said, quirking his lips slightly. “If doin’ better for you is what it takes then I’ll be doin’ better right here an’ now brother, we gotta work on your motherfuckin’ shit!”

Sollux was blushing yellow. Gamzee, seeing that and taking it as his cue to think about his words, flushed indigo.

“You’re dumb,” Sollux said, mismatched eyes not meeting Gamzee’s.

“Yeah,” Gamzee agreed, and he started to haul out containers so they could get inside and clean.


	5. Sleepy Batter

To be fair, Batter had been quite busy since his arrival in Zone 0. Purifying spectres wasn’t exactly a low-energy job, and he had made it all the way to Zone 3 without stopping to catch his breath or even _sit._

Even so, Zacharie wasn’t quite sure what to make of Batter falling asleep _on his counter._

Batter had just walked in, quiet and stoic as ever, hopped up on the counter (and Zacharie had feared for his life, despite being a merchant and knowing Game mechanics would not allow for that), and laid down to sleep.

Zacharie stared at him from behind his grinning mask, looking snide on the outside and feeling befuddled on the in. Should he just… leave Batter where he was? Should he move him? How could a Game protagonist even do this sort of thing? 

Zacharie was fairly certain that he should move Batter. Make him resume his quest.

He stared at Batter’s sleeping form, the stripes on his shirt slowly shifting as Batter’s chest rose and fell. His four eyes were shut and hooded by the brim of his cap, his hands soft and holding no weapon.

…Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to leave him lying there for just a little longer.


	6. Remember Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asgore doesn't know how to productively deal with terrible memories of the war.

Grillby was a quiet man.

Asgore didn’t talk about it.

So when Asgore got up from his armchair, large arms shaking and sweat sticking to his fur, he took off his cape, his newer armor, and went to Snowdin. Grillby’s was open, as it tended to be for all but eight hours of the day, but when Grillby saw his king walk into his bar wearing his old armor, he closed the place early. Everyone complained until they caught sight- or sniff- of Asgore’s quiet, not-so-happy form, and then they left.

Grillby didn’t ask. He simply left his tie and vest on a barstool and walked out the backdoor, locking it behind Asgore.

The two were silent as they walked through Snowdin’s forest, past the Snowdrakes and the golf course, almost to the ruins before they veered off the path.

“I’m sorry,” Asgore whispered, because he hated violence to his core and yet, there he was.

Grillby didn’t answer, but Asgore felt his forgiveness. Or perhaps, he felt his understanding.

Grillby’s form grew large, terrible, all consuming, He was nearly as tall as the trees they were hidden by. Asgore, in his armor of old, the ancient iron that took many blows from human swords, drew his trident. 

Grillby struck first, knowing that Asgore would not be able to, knowing Asgore could be at his very lowest and yet, even then, never strike first. 

The two battled for a time, desperate, lurching, a parody of what they’d done in their battle against the humans, back in ages long past. They moved with a familiar recklessness that they’d had to assume to even survive against human strength. Familiar, indeed, because it haunted their every nightmare.

When Grillby collapsed, his health in the single digits, Asgore stowed his trident and helped Grillby back up. They then sat together, arms carelessly holding the other’s waist. They’d sat like this many times before, quiet save Grillby’s gentle, smokeless crackling, staring at the forest they’d wrought havoc on. 

“I’m sorry,” Asgore said again, his speech made a little funny by the bruise on his cheek.

“I remember it too,” Grillby said. That was all that needed passed.


End file.
